Vikings '11 Midseason: The Future Begins Now

Image by Hawk Eyes via FlickrOn this bye week, the Minnesota Vikings have a 2-5 record and are last in the NFC North division behind the Super Bowl champion (and undefeated) Green Bay Packers, the surprising Detroit Lions (they're not just for Thanksgiving any more), and the so-so Chicago Bears.

This season has so far been punctuated by spectacular second-half collapses against the Lions and San Diego Chargers, bad losses to the Packers and Bears, and the inexperience of coach Leslie Frazier and his staff contributing to those losses.

The only victories have been against a terrible Arizona Cardinals team at home, and the Carolina Panthers on the road--but only after the Panthers missed a game-tying field goal with seconds left in regulation.

This season has also seen the ascension of rookie quarterback Christian Ponder as the Vikings' starter, replacing the ineffective veteran Donovan McNabb during the Sunday night game at Chicago.  (Does this mean the Vikings are done using past-their-prime NFL quarterbacks as starters?)  Ponder has played well in the two games he's started since then, but he needs a few more the rest of the season for a better evaluation.

The Vikings have also had the usual run of players in trouble with either the NFL or the law, so appearances on the police blotter no longer have the shock value they once did.  Only one player that we know of this season is no longer with the team, and that's Bernard Berrian.

Off the field, the ongoing haggling over where the Vikings will be playing after this season continues.  Some recent developments:

• Minnesota Governor Mark Dayton, who has yet to call for a special legislative session to consider a new stadium, has dropped the idea of using sales taxes to help pay for one.  So now it looks like some kind of gambling revenue (casino, pulltabs, racino, etc.) is being favored, despite its pitfalls.
• The Vikings still insist their top choice for a new stadium is in Arden Hills.  But a poll released by the Star Tribune newspaper said its respondents seem to prefer one of Minneapolis' three proposed sites (one of which just happens to sit on land the Strib owns near the Metrodome).
• The two remaining home games the Vikings had to play elsewhere last season because the Metrodome roof collapsed might end up forcing them to play another season there, according to a clause in the team's lease.  It sounds far-fetched and may not be legally binding, but those involved say this shouldn't affect the stadium negotiations.  The Vikings may not think so.

For the rest of the 2011 season, and with no chance of making the NFL playoffs we should have a better idea of what the future holds for the Minnesota Vikings.  On the field and off.